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#242 Plantar Fasciitis, Revisited
May 14, 2025 · 65 min

Plantar fascia pain plagues many a runner, but finding its cause and treating it can be mystifying and frustrating. Nate is joined by returning guest Doug Adams to take a deep dive into plantar facia (and general foot) pain in order to help you get to the underlying cause. Doug lends his expertise on how biomechanics and walking/running gait an effect plantar injury risk. He offers practical tips to help you rehab and prevent plantar fasciopathy. They also take a look at orthotics, treatment modalities, shoes, and how they impact PF pain.

Dr. Doug Adams is a Physical Therapist who has published and spoken at an international level on all things related to running. Doug has taught thousands of professionals his systematic approach to providing personalized plans for runners through the Certified Running Gait Analyst and Endurance Running Coaching courses. He also designed and created a portable 3D Motion Analysis system called Helix 3D for analyzing and categorizing running form that is used widely throughout the Department of Defense and commercial sectors. You can find him on Instagram at @RunDNASystem and @DougAdamsPT.

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Chapters

0:00 - Intro6:17 - A primer on the plantar fascia and foot anatomy11:56 - The difference between plantar fasciitis and plantar fasciopathy17:12 - The most common PF symptoms18:50 - Diagnosing the root of PF pain22:50 - Common gait issues that contribute to PF pain39:54 - How do you address the root cause of PF pain?43:12 - Toe strength, footwear, and orthotics57:06 - Shoe choices with PF pain1:04:10 - Wrap-up